19 years ago a team from Boston did the unthinkable.
It started with a stolen base by Dave Roberts in Game 4 of the American League Division Series between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox.
The Sox trailed that series 3-0 to a Yankees team that had owned them for years. A Yankees team that had been to the World Series six times in the previous eight seasons.
And the script flipped. That stolen base by Roberts eventually led to a tying run, extra innings, and a Big Papi walk-off homer in the 12th inning. The Red Sox won their first game of that series that cold October night in 2004, and kept winning games — bloody socks included — until they knocked the Yankees out in Game 7 at Yankee Stadium in the 2004 ALCS.
Celtics have had the 2004 Red Sox World Series video on repeat.
— Ian Inangelo (@iinangelo) May 23, 2023
Don’t let us win tonight pic.twitter.com/iTf9g8YDsY
It was the series that changed the sports world forever. The Yankees haven’t been the same since, while the 2004 World Series title won by Boston a week-and-a-half later was the first of four championships to come for Boston.
Now in 2023, another team in Beantown is trying to duplicate that effort. The Boston Celtics trailed the Miami Heat 3-0 in the Eastern Conference Finals.
That's two ✅✅#UnfinishedBusiness pic.twitter.com/0jmVpTwPT6
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) May 26, 2023
Jimmy Butler has been a one-man wrecking crew for Miami as the Heat bulldozed the Milwaukee Bucks and New York Knicks to get to this spot. It looked like they were well on their way to meeting Denver in the NBA Finals.
But now? After a 110-97 loss to the Celtics in Game 5 at TD Garden? Anything is possible.
Butler was held in check, scoring only 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting, and was 0-for-2 from beyond the arch.
one game at a time ✅ pic.twitter.com/IGvaC1F2Ql
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) May 26, 2023
Four Celtics scored in the 20’s, including Jayson Tatum who had 21 points, and Derrick White, who led the way with 24 points. Marcus Smart was right behind White with 23 points of his own. Jaylen Brown also had 21 points on the evening.
The Celtics and Heat were pretty much even all night, hitting around 50 percent of their shots, but Miami couldn’t stay out of foul trouble, and turned the ball over 16 times. That is a recipe for disaster.
Now the Celtics and Heat head back to Miami after back-to-back blowouts for Boston. Can Miami regroup, refocus and take Game 6 to end this series? Or, should Boston should win Game 6, are we looking at a historic comeback in the East Finals? Because no team has ever in the history of the NBA comeback from a 3-0 series deficit to win said series.
Will deJa’Vu happen all over again for Boston? Buckle up and find out.